As expected, the third voice came from a figure with a different appearance and style.
The most striking difference was once again in the hair and eye color—this time, a bright red, reminiscent of the rising sun, a warm and passionate hue.
The expression on his face was the calmest of all. There was none of the Golden Shinji's wrath, none of the Vampire Shinji's malevolence, nor any otherworldly aura. Instead, he simply exuded friendliness, like someone greeting an old friend.
If there was one thing that didn't fit with his gentle demeanor, it was the long-handled scythe in his hand. The cold gleaming weapon introduced a small but noticeable flaw to the Human Shinji's otherwise warm appearance.
But that couldn't be helped—without the scythe to cut off Kirei's legs, he would have escaped.
After kicking Kirei back to his original spot, the Human Shinji, scythe in hand, walked into the battlefield where light and darkness clashed, positioning himself between the Golden Shinji and the Vampire Shinji.
"What are you two doing? I brought you here to maintain control, not to stir up trouble. If you let someone escape, who's going to take responsibility?"
"Don't worry, no one's getting away!"
The Vampire Shinji turned his gaze, filled with malice, toward Crimson Moon.
The Golden Shinji closed his eyes again, floated into the air, and sat cross-legged on the giant god's shoulder.
"Don't lose to your destructive instincts."
"Calm your heart and listen to my scripture. The Great Teacher of Boundless Radiance, whose enlightenment illuminates all."
As the Golden Shinji chanted, wrapped in golden Buddha light, the giant Altera's twisted, fierce, and icy expression began to soften.
For Sefar, the giant god, the urge to devour was much like the relationship between Alaya and its guardians. No matter how much reluctance there was, it was nearly impossible to resist the command planted at birth.
At first, the giant could resist with willpower, but as time passed, the primal instinct to destroy everything grew more intense. If left unchecked, it wouldn't be long before the giant launched indiscriminate attacks on everything around it.
However, the one who moved fastest was Crimson Moon. Without hesitation, she launched an attack on the Vampire Shinji.
After all, he was the most arrogant and taunting of the three. As soon as he appeared, he had said:
"Don't bother. Your control doesn't work on me. If you want to leave, just kill me, and you can leave anytime."
That was the last straw for Crimson Moon.
She was, after all, the undefeated Moon King for several eras, losing only once to Zelretch—a defeat that came from her lack of understanding of Magic. If they fought again, she might not lose. Even though her power had weakened after just being resurrected, she wasn't someone a Dead Apostle could challenge.
Using her Marble Phantasm, she unleashed a hundred different types of punishment on the Vampire Shinji, just as she had done to Kirei.
However, the attacks that had killed Kirei countless times before were not as effective on the Vampire Shinji. At least half of them missed, and the remaining ones were significantly weakened.
Amidst the barrage of attacks, the Vampire Shinji continued to provoke her:
"Ever since the day I met Arcueid, I've been preparing for her going out of control. Do you know how many times I've fought her over the years? I know how to deal with Marble Phantasm better than you do."
When her first attack failed, Crimson Moon resorted to close combat.
Unlike Arcueid, who lacked technique and relied purely on instinct and brute strength, Crimson Moon had undergone formal combat training. Her mastery of various fighting techniques, combined with her terrifying physical abilities, allowed her to decapitate her opponent in less than ten moves—a fatal wound for any non-True Ancestor vampire.
"Seems like you're the one lacking in skill."
"Oh? Is that so?"
Even though the Vampire Shinji's head was severed, there was no blood in the wound. The Vampire Shinji's head could still speak.
Crimson Moon swung her hand and shattered the head into fragments, yet still, there was no blood—only mist and solid shadows.
The mist and shadows flowed downward, reforming into a head on the body.
At this point, Crimson Moon finally realized something was wrong:
"You—you're not a Dead Apostle, are you?"
The Vampire Shinji shrugged.
"I never said I was. Who said vampires have to be either True Ancestors or Dead Apostles? Ever heard of Medusa? Stheno? Euryale? Of course, I'm not the same as them either. While I do have Arcueid's blood, I'm not a real vampire. I'm a 'fictional monster' shaped by human beliefs—call me Count Dracula!"
The more he spoke, the more bizarre it became. These professional terms would only make sense to veteran Type-Moon fans, leaving most people completely confused.
So, Touko chose to ask directly. She first asked Justeaze, but when she didn't understand either, she turned to the Human Shinji who had been fighting Kirei. After all, he seemed the most approachable and easygoing—especially compared to the others. Kirei had undergone a Beast transformation, but he was still far weaker than Crimson Moon and the giant god.
The Human Shinji didn't disappoint, answering every question without holding back.
"Innocent Monster", he explained, was a special type of existence among Heroic Spirits. It was a phenomenon where one's past actions created a distorted image, leading to changes in their abilities and appearance. This concept was the essence of the ability.
The most typical example was Count Dracula, a fictional character who, despite being a made-up figure, became so famous and deeply ingrained in human culture that even the real Vlad III, the greatest ruler of Romania and a genuine human hero, was affected by the legend, gaining the forbidden Noble Phantasm, Kazikli Bey (The Bloodstained King).
Because Dracula was a fictional figure, it was impossible to judge him by the same standards as Dead Apostles. Methods effective against Dead Apostles wouldn't necessarily work on Dracula.
"Is that vampire over there born the same way?"
"Exactly. Based on Arcueid's True Ancestor blood, human beliefs were condensed into form, manifesting him as a fictional vampire through Magic."
Upon hearing this, Crimson Moon felt a deep sense of disgust, as if she had swallowed a fly. The vampire legend had originated from her, and now that legend had become detached from reality and returned to trouble its source. Of course, she was disgusted.
Lorelei took over the questioning and asked, "And what about you two?"
"The Goden Shinji was manifested using the relic stolen from Araya Souren as a medium. As for me, the core is a Noble Phantasm, and the red hair and eyes are the traits of the original owner of that Noble Phantasm—Perseus."
"So, you two are avatars created by Magic?"
"To be precise, not avatars, but incarnations," the Human Shinji corrected. "Similar to the Daoist concept of cutting away the three corpses. I'm sure Touko has heard of it."
"I have, indeed."
Touko nodded thoughtfully, recalling the ancient legends she had heard in those distant lands.
—Cut off the three corpses, and one attains the transcendent; immortal.